Impressions vs. awareness. They are two of the hottest words within the influencer marketing space that play a heavy role in determining brand partnerships. At face value, the importance of these words is delivered in numbers or percentages. What do impressions mean and how do engagement rates operate? Let’s break it down.
Impressions are the number of times an audience sees a piece of content. This metric could mean someone has seen the content multiple times or just once. It’s essentially the count of how many eyeballs view a piece of content and how many times. If a brand’s goal is to create awareness for a launch campaign, we recommend to either spend the budget on a single macro influencer or multiple micro to mid-tier influencers. This strategy is beneficial for creating buzz and sparking interest to a wide audience.
Engagement rate is the number of interactions (likes, comments, story views, URL clicks) generated by an influencer’s content or profile. Out of the three buzzwords, ‘engagement rate’ is the most popular and the most crucial for an influencer. When brands review a potential partner this metric describes how interested an influencer’s followers are in their content and how impactful they are on social. A healthy engagement rate ranges between two and eight percent based on the level of followership. Influencers with a more engaged following have a higher social reach as they’re seen as a trusted source to a niche audience.
Brands are turning to micro and mid-tier influencers because of their highly-engaged following. From one industry insider to another, it’s important to know that engagement drives sales whereas impressions drive awareness. Depending on the goals of your brand knowing the difference between the two can make or break a campaign.
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